No such animal? I would like to buy one tripod and only once. Carbon fiber would be nice. It would be used for macro photography and general landscape photography and will be carried everywhere, including hikes.
Also, what type of head would you recommend. I did see the current discussion on tripod for macro photography. Interesting, but we're not quite into it that far, yet!
For lenses 300mm or less the Gitzo GT2530 (or GT2540) at 3.2 lbs works well for me with a Really Right Stuff BH-55. I chose the BH-55 over the BH-40 for occasional use on another legset that requires the larger diameter of this head. The RRS BH-40 + GT2530 would give you a solid mount for most uses =< 300mm including macro.
The Gitzo Explorer series may better suit your needs for macro work.
I'm a little bit different, got a velbon 540 carbon fiber. Good quality, light and resonable price for a tripod that steps you into a more expensive level.
The BEST would be Gitzo, hands down. And I'm not talking about the best in a certain price range. They are the best, but expect to pay for it. A tripod should last forever, and I full expect my 2541L to do just that. Superbly made, light, and very strong.
For macro the explorer series from Gitzo are very nice. They allow a great variety in positioning the center column, but they are less useful for general landscapes for which I think the basic Gitzos are better. I hope this helps.
"No such animal? I would like to buy one tripod and only once."
In the short, it's a two tripod world with three ballheads to compliment the legsets. And that's, my opinion, minimum, in order to meet your post heading: "The BEST Carbon Fiber Tripod"
"ALL" pods are a compromise. The question is how much are you willing to compromise and in what direction; left, center or right.
Portable? 1540T. A specialty pod.
Light? 1530/1540.
Middle-ground? 2530/2540, but neither light nor able to handle the big stuff in the wind.
Stable? 3530/3540, able to handle the big guns and blustery wind conditions.
My choices are the 1540 and a 1325 as I haven't upgraded to a 3540.
Which way to go will depend on the depth of your pocketbook, how much of a gearhead you are and what your various needs are going be, both now and two/three years into the future.
Ballheads? Best left to a separate thread so things won't get muddled together. The short version, Arca-Swiss is must have for the interchangeability of the adapter plates. RRS is the gold standard in this arena of many.
The popular recommendations: RRS (ReallyRightStuff): BH-25Pro, BH-40LR II, BH-55 LR, Kirk: BH-3, Markins: Q3, M10, M20L and the Bogen/Manfrotto 468MG with a RRS lever clamp attached. My current choices, BH-25Pro, BH-40LR II and a Bogen/Manfrotto 468MG w/RRS lever clamp. Others, I'm sure, will chime in with their recommendations in this regard.
Uber light? BH-25Pro; specialty ballhead as it has no panning base function.
Light? Markins Q3, M10, RRS BH-40LR II, Kirk BH-3.
dcains wrote:
It was bound to happen, sooner or later, but let's not make a habit of it
Thanks!!
What do you guys talking about? Did you ever see or use a Benro from the new series? I own two Gitzos and now two Benros. The A-series models from Benro (aluminium) are absolutely equal to the old Gitzos ins stability and reliability.
Mario
Edited by Mario Moschel on Dec 10, 2007 at 06:26 PM GMT
Edited by Mario Moschel on Dec 10, 2007 at 06:26 PM GMT
Dec 02, 2007 at 05:53 AM
Lars Johnsson Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
Mario Moschel wrote:
What do you guys talking about? Did you ever see or use a Benro from the new series? I own two Gitzos and now two Benros. The A-series models from Benro (aluminium) are absolutely equal to the old Gitzos ins stability and reliability.
Mario
Yes I see a lot of Benro tripods. It's the most common brand in Thailand where I stay a lot.
I don't think it's the same quality as Gitzo. And even if you think the A-series are the same quality. He asked for the best Carbon Fiber Tripod. Not aluminium tripods.
Lars Johnsson wrote:
Yes I see a lot of Benro tripods. It's the most common brand in Thailand where I stay a lot.
I don't think it's the same quality as Gitzo. And even if you think the A-series are the same quality. He asked for the best Carbon Fiber Tripod. Not aluminium tripods.
OK, you could be right, I really don't know about the quality of Benro's carbon models, I just compared the aluminium models.
Sorry for the hassle.
Mario
Dec 02, 2007 at 06:16 AM
Lars Johnsson Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
I haven't used the Gitzo Carbons, but I have experience with the Slik Carbon Fiber pods and they work fine for me. They make a 3 section and 4 section version too (shorter length when compressed, and slightly less height).
The absolute best CF tripod--------is the one that works for your set-up.
And just right in time for Christmas, everyone needs a new tripod and head. I wish that there really were such a thing as a single tripod that could do it all-----but I still find myself having several tripods and head combinations as being the best evil solution.
Don't buy on name alone! Gitzo is "good" but don't buy a tripod without trying it out! A great solution for my medium format digital setup has been the Giottos MT8170----it is a three section CF tripod. Well-designed and well-made. Incredible features. Also worked quite well with Canon 5D and Canon 300mm f/2.8 IS.
Edited by kdphotography on Dec 02, 2007 at 11:07 AM GMT
i'm afraid this individual has been off his medication too long
